Big Sis Briefing: The Crash After the Leap

Turns out that stepping out of corporate life is not just a career move. It’s a full blown nervous system reset.

After the high of making a bold decision, there was a crash. Not dramatic, not loud. Just a quiet, steady wipe-out.

My body and brain hit a wall after years of running on cortisol, caffeine and calendar alerts.

It’s wild to learn how real the science is behind stress hormones, how long they stay in your system and how strange it feels to come down from them.

There’s no siren song warning you while you’re in it. I was probably a frog in boiling water for longer than I realised. It’s only now, having stepped out, that I can even feel the heat.

I haven’t found my new rhythm yet. I’m still wobbly. Still adjusting. Still trying not to bite off more than I can chew. But I’m being led by some deep, unshakable knowing that this is absolutely still the right path for me and I am on my way now.

I'm not creating a whole new life from scratch, I’m unbecoming the parts of me that were never sustainable.

The goal is a steadier place, a calmer brain and a regulated system. One where I can be creative and grounded. Curious and rested. Where I can build a beautiful future without sprinting toward burnout.

In hindsight, I could’ve taken more deliberate time off before opening up my calendar and accepting all sorts of big, exciting things! But, I felt so alive in those early weeks that electric rush of doing what I’ve wanted to do for so long.

Now, I’m seeing that rest is productive. It is actually necessary at this point. The problem is that I’ve never really been taught how to do it and that is is safe to do so. That might be the hardest lesson I’ll ever have to learn on the big ball.

So for now, I’m going back to basics:
✨ Sleep.
✨ Sunlight.
✨ Food.
✨ Fresh air.
✨ Phone down, face up.
✨ A journal nearby.
✨ Regular check up from the neck up.
✨ One deep breath at a time.

I’m really trying to make space for rest, for ideas, for the good stuff that wants to find me. Productivity is looking different now. Listening to my natural energy levels and shaping ‘work’ around that is also a very new skill for me.

If you’re in a similar chapter, I see you. It’s not linear but you don’t have to rush. Give yourself grace. Your body is catching up to the courage it took to leap, as mine is too.

I don’t think we are doing it wrong. I think we are healing.

Mel 💖